TFP: The Secret War
by The Antonymtion
Summary: AU (first FanFic) After Jack disappears on mission,investigating a M.E.C.H wharehouse, whats left of team Prime assumes the worst. But when an extraterrestrial human arrives, he offers help, and sends them on an electric roller-coaster ride of Action, Adventure, Romance, Secrets, and suppressions. (Reviews welcome!)
1. Prologue

Chapter 1: Prologue

Terran calendar: Sept. 10, 2010; approx. 4:05 P.M. Location: Crossus II, Northern continent, District 12, Section 3

The Soldier was young by Terran standards, about sixteen years old; young, but deadly nonetheless. He was already exhausted, having minor injuries; but he was still fighting, as they say, "with a vengeance."

Just ten days before, he lost his best friend. He told no one of this however, because just before his friend died, he made a covenant with him, making him keep the very knowledge of his existence a secret; at least until the war was over.

The enemy he was fighting was a race of insectoid aliens, called "Cyrostians," hell-bent on the enslavement, select sterilization and husbandry, and the possible group-extermination of the Human race.

As he moved the plasma rapid-gun emplacement around, he started speaking in Humanese. "{Come here brickheads,}" he said,"{your death awaits!}" He yelled, although no one could hear over the uber-loud racket. A few seconds later, an explosion occurred outside his gunport, sending him, along with everything else, backwards toward the wall. As he regained awareness, he noticed that something was wrong; and as he was losing consciousness he saw why: his chest, or lack thereof, was massively damaged. As he blacked out he remembered something; and in one final thought he defiantly raged,'{my name is Jarod Flux!}'

Then he died.

* * *

At that exact moment, 42.37 billion parsecs away, in Jasper, Nevada, the Human named Jack Darby laid eyes on a motorcycle that was "more than meets the eye." The motorcycle, a Cybertronian female named Arcee, was hiding in the K.O. Burger parking lot from the Vehicon "twins," when she saw Jack come out. What he said next touched her spark: "I love you."

Five years later... almost three years after the Autobots left Earth, special agent Jack Darby, along with several military units, were scouting out a possible MECH locale. As he was waiting for the other units to report in, he started to think back to three years ago...

He snapped back to reality when he heard screaming on the radio. "All units report!" he said. He received silence. "Agent Darby to all units, what's happening in there?" He ordered. All that was heard was snapping and clicking. "I repeat, this is agent Jack Darby, please respond!" he said with determination, only to be answered with sharp grunting, whistling, and clicking.

Grabbing his Walther 2000 sniper rifle, he turned around, only to stare into the multi-lensed eyes of a man-sized bug. To say Jack was surprised was an understatement, but he wasn't paralyzed with fear. Almost as soon as he turned, the "giant bug" charged him; however, it was far enough away for Jack to get a round through the carapace, slowing it down to, literally, a dead stop.

Unfortunately, the rifle wasn't silenced; consequently, the resounding gunshot echoed for miles, alerting the other insectoids to his whereabouts. As he was examining the corpse, the sound of snapping branches fell upon his ear. He took that as a sign to leave post-haste. He needed to contact Fowler at base and alert him of this new threat.

Unfortunately for Jack, the "insectoids", a powerful race from Cyrostia, had knocked-out communications for miles. Satellite, radio, and even landline telephones were fried. The Cyrostians were there for one reason: to kidnap the hero Jack Darby, the first Human on Cybertron, and friend of the Autobots.

As Jack was dashing between trees, he suddenly heard and felt a loud thudding noise. Turning around, he saw a huge, four-legged monster chasing him. He knew he couldn't outrun it, so he decided to outsmart it; that was a mistake.

As he turned sharply to mislead it, the "monster" quickly snatched him with one of it's two enormous arms. It then injected him with a bio-sedative. As he blacked-out, he whispered, "forgive me Arcee, I'm sorry-"

Then he was taken to the Queen.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It was a clear and starry night on Cybertron. Atop a tall building a lone figure sat, looking up at the stars. She sighed, closing her optics, and remembered how long it was since she was back on earth.

It had been three years since she had seen her friends in person. What was worse was that she hadn't heard from Jack in over two months.

"Alright, stop it," she said to herself, "come on Arcee, you need to stop thinking about him; he's probably forgotten to call, or is busy." But, somehow, she had a feeling that that wasn't the case. She sighed, lowering her helm. Although she tried to think about something else, her processor kept wandering back to him. 'The more I think about him, the more I get the feeling that I desperately want to be with him,' she thought. 'I never had this feeling with my other partners...but...they weren't Jack,' she concluded, looking back at the stars.

Suddenly, she realized what she was thinking. "Oh Primus! What am I thinking?!" She exclaimed," he's organic, I'm metallic; were not even compatible! Besides, he's probably got a girlfriend," she sighed, "heck, maybe even a fiancée." She then brought herself down by saying, "I doubt that he would be as attracted to me as I am to him anyway; it would be unnatural for Humans and Cybertronians to 'fall in love'. Besides, he's smaller than me, even if we were compatible, there's the risk of me hurting him." Then, thinking about it, she thought, 'he also has a shorter lifespan than me, it would spare me the spark-break to deny my feelings for him.'

After a while, she decided to ask for a transfer to Earth sometime soon. Looking back at those three years, Arcee thought, 'I don't think I'm needed here anymore. After all, we've received over thirty refugee transports, almost two every week now; not to mention our latest discovery: the great titan Metroplex, or rather, what's left of him.' She sighed again and thought,' at least I'll see Jack in about a month or so.' Little did she realize, she would see Jack sooner than she thought.

As she was leaving, she received a call on her intercom,"Arcee, we require your presence at Headquarters, immediately!" "On my way," she responded, heading back. Somehow, she got the feeling that something bad was going to happen. She shrugged it off, however, and headed towards Iacon.

When she arrived, she was directed to a private meeting chamber. Ultra Magnus, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead were already there. When she entered, Ultra Magnus spoke, "I gathered you all here to inform you of some horrible news." Everyone looked at each other nervously. Magnus continued, "our friend, Jack Darby, has gone missing, and is presumed dead." Bulkhead gasped, Bumblebee nearly choked, but Arcee, voice full of emotion, exclaimed, "what?!' Everyone there looked at her, expecting her to deny the news outright; but she just stood there, staring at the floor. 'Oh no, not again!' She thought, 'I couldn't have lost my third partner!'

Then a small voice in the back of her processor spoke. 'You should've been there with him, but instead you chose living on Cybertron! No wonder he's "passed on" so soon,' it said. She started to hold herself when Ultra Magnus spoke, "Ratchet has informed me that the funeral service will be held in three days. Arcee, because of your partnership with him, I will permit a two week leave, starting now. The rest of you only get three days."

Arcee, having composed herself, said," alright, let's go, standing around isn't going to benefit us anymore than going." Briskly leaving, Arcee found it difficult to control her emotions. A tear started to form in the corner of her optic. As she arrived at the spacebridge, she wiped her tears, then she walked into the spacebridge to Earth.

* * *

As Jack regained consciousness, he had the feeling he was in an interrogation room; but as he looked around, it looked more like a torture chamber. Suddenly, a sharp, feminine voice lanced out of the darkness, making Jack jump in his restraints. "Ah, your awake," it said in fluent English," I'm glad we could finally meet." When she stepped into the light, Jack nearly had a heart attack from the horror he saw: the face and body of a human female, but with insect wings on her back, multi-lenses where her eyes should be, a pair of large stingers each on a forearm, and sharpened teeth in her smile. This was the Queen of the Cyrostians.

When Jack tried to yell, the monstrosity before him whispered almost soothingly, "Ssh, don't start that now. After all, we will be together for a long, long time, "she finished, evilly grinning with pleasure.

Then Jack blacked-out.

* * *

Meanwhile, on Terran, a mysterious, armor-clad stranger was searching for evidence of Jack Darby's abduction. When he found what he was looking for, he mumbled," {so, that's what you're up to now,}" in Humanize. Then he headed to the location of Section E. It was time to introduce himself; It was time to reveal his horrible war.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Arcee was in the middle of the desert, weeping uncontrollably. Just then, her intercom buzzed. As she composed herself, Ratchet spoke, "Arcee, the service is about to start." "On my way," she answered, transforming into her blue motorcycle. On the way there, a wave of guilt shuddered her frame. She ignored this, however, and drove on.

The funeral was unlike any other; instead of a normal funeral at Arlington, with relatives and fellow soldiers, it was only June, Fowler, Miko, Raf, Ratchet, Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee. Arcee took note of Miko's appearance, now different from the last time she saw her. For one, she barely moved at all; for two, her attire was torn jeans and a grey tank top. But most obvious of all, her hairstyle was now, instead of two pigtails, just hanging over one side of her head, but the ends were still hot-pink. When fowler gave the eulogy, June was already in tears. When he ended, Arcee had to excuse herself.

She drove to cliffjumper's memorial. After transforming, she sat at the edge of the nearby cliff, right next to the memorial. She then started to talk aloud, "It's happened again Cliff, I've lost another partner." Her optics began to fill with Energon tears. "And I was in love with him! "she exclaimed, overcome with emotion.

She sat there and sobbed. After awhile, she returned to base; composed, cold and cynical. Over the next week, she kept going to Cliffjumper's memorial. Every time she left, she became more depressed. The thoughts,' is it my fault?' and, 'did I do this by not being there?' Constantly filled her processor. Eventually, she started contemplating suicide, saying," I can't bear living a life without you, Jack, I want to be with you in the Afterlife."

On the eighth day, while she was moping next to Cliffjumper, she got a call. "Arcee, I don't mean to interrupt your privacy, but we've detected an unknown source of energy near your position." In the background, Arcee could hear Raf exclaim, "Ratchet! The energy signal! It's moving!" "By the All-Spark!" Ratchet said, "I can't get a satellite image. Arcee, I need you to scout it out," said Ratchet. Arcee complied, racing in the direction of the energy source.

When she arrived at the entrance to a canyon she was half-surprised. What she saw was a Humanoid object, apparently walking toward the base. "Arcee to base," she said in her com, making the object stop for a moment, "I...I see the energy source, it's a MECH soldier."

The "MECH soldier" resumed walking toward hanger E. When Arcee got a closer look, she noticed the figure was armored, sun glinting off its armor. Then something clicked in her processor, 'maybe MECH had something to do with Jack's death.'

As she crept closer, she saw his weapons: some sort of rifle or carbine that she could not place, a handgun of some sort, and what looked like a knife on his side. She also noticed that parts of his armor moved almost fluidically, like they weren't completely solid.

Suddenly, he stopped, making Arcee duck behind a large boulder. After a short moment, she peeked around the corner, and gazed directly into the glowing visor of this mysterious stranger. "Scrap!" She gasped as she dashed back behind the boulder. Crouching against the boulder, Arcee expected him to step around the edge.

Instead, he walked on, seemingly as if he hadn't seen her. She took this chance to try to get a closer look at him; but when she turned around, all the pain she had pent up inside made her snap.

As if in Vengeance, she deployed her blasters, and shot him in the back, crying, "THIS IS FOR JACK!" By the time she realized what she had done, he was already sprawled upon the ground. He wasn't moving.

"Arcee to base," she called. "Go ahead" they answered. "The object is unconscious, awaiting transport," she said flatly. "It's WHAT?" Asked Ratchet in surprise. "You'll find out," Arcee ended.

* * *

It didn't take long for transport to arrive; and within minutes, they, including Arcee, were on their way back to base. A thought lanced through Arcee's processor,' already I'm starting to lash out. I just can't take his loss. After this is sorted out, I'll join Jack in the afterlife.'

Before she knew it, they were back at base. June was already running out of the hanger. "What happened?" She demanded. Arcee answered," I shot him... in the back." June glared at her for a brief moment, then raced the Stranger to the medical bay.

As soon as June arrived, Ratchet started setting up the equipment used for scanning both Human and Cybertronians for injuries. When they strapped the armor-clad Stranger to the gurney, they started a level one scan. When that was finished, they found he had a major concussion, internal bleeding, and several broken ribs. However, there wasn't any Energon in his system; most of it was painted, or rather sprayed, on the back of his armored suit.

When they took a level two scan, Ratchet exclaimed at what he was seeing," by the All-Spark! The energy source! It's implanted inside him!"

After further scanning, they found out that his circulatory system was rerouted, bypassing where his heart should be, and replacing that cavity with a power reactor; using magnetic railing to circulate the blood. His immune system was assisted by, what appeared to be, nanites; that, by this time, had repaired some of the injuries.

Finally, June decided to take off his helmet, to further study the Stranger. Along with the help of, surprisingly, Miko, they eventually detached his helmet from the rest of his armor. When it came off, it revealed a Human male's face of about twenty years of age, an old, faded scar ran across his right eye, running almost from his hairline to his chin, semi-buzzcut brown hair on his head. This grabbed Miko's attention, stunning her at least.

June, being curious, started to open his right eyelid, only to be startled at what was underneath: a cybernetic eye, apparently on low power. She gasped at this, jerking away from the eye.

Addressing Arcee, June stated," this is not a MECH soldier; in fact, this technology is beyond anything on Earth!" Fowler, who had been watching, said, "so, is this a guy from the future?"

"Impossible," Ratchet interjected, "his Chronoton levels match ours, meaning he's from the same timeframe as us,".

While they were conversing, Miko took the opportunity to examine both of the handsome Stranger's eyes. She found that only the right eye was cybernetic, the other was a deep azure. After thinking, Miko finally spoke up," why was he heading over here? Why not somewhere else?" The question remained unanswered.

As June was examining his armor, she discovered a charred spot on his shoulder piece. As she started to wipe off the spot, she said, "his armor is very intricate, several if not all joints are completely covered, and can still extend fairly quickly." As June was scrubbing his shoulder, Raf and Fowler were examining his helmet. Suddenly, Raf exclaimed, "hey! There appears to be a torch mark across the visor."

As soon as Raf said that, June removed the charring. She noticed a symbol, glistening like silver. The symbol was a shield with a lightning bolt across it. "hey Bill, come look at this," she said. Arcee also looked with interest.

"By the All-Spark!" Ratchet exclaimed, "whatever he went through took a long time. His cybernetic prostheses were attached at different times."

"Cybernetic prostheses?" Arcee asked.

"All four limbs, his eye and Parts of his brain," Ratchet answered, making Miko stare at him in shock.

"So for all we know, he could be an emotionless machine," Raf stated. Miko hoped that what Raf said wasn't true. Arcee blurted out, "is there a possibility that he was involved with Jack's death?" June was considering that possibility, as Ratchet glanced at Arcee. "There are no fragments of vegetation on his armor," he said," however, it does not rule out the possibility." Then June scolded Arcee," I'm grieving over the loss over my son too Arcee, but your acting like it's your right to exact vengeance on anyone you want!"

"June," Arcee said, "I...I'm Sorry." She apologized, stunning everyone. "But you have to understand," she continued, "I had already lost two partners before I met Jack; and now that he's dead, that's all I think about. Now he's my third partner I've lost!"

Suddenly, a mysterious low-baritone voice lanced out, nearly scaring fowler out of his skivvies, "He's. Not. Dead."


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Everyone turned to look at the source of the voice; what they saw really surprised them. The Mysterious, Armor-Clad Stranger was sitting up in the gurney, his steely eyes scanning the room. What happened next was unavoidable. Arcee was the first to speak. "What have you done with him?" She said threateningly. "Nothing," he replied.

Everyone was astonished that he was awake this soon. Getting off the gurney, the Mysterious Stranger calmly walked to the nearby rail. "What do you mean 'nothing'?" June demanded," you obviously know who we are talking about."

"Special agent Jackson Darby, reported missing four weeks ago, assumed dead," he replied. "Question is," he continued, facing Arcee, "why should you care so much about a puny Human?" he asked this, striking a blow at Arcee, taking her temper to the boiling point.

Servos clenched into fists, and baring her dentals, she menacingly said, "You're going to wish you hadn't said that." And without warning, she jumped at the stranger, pinning him to the wall. Arm blade extended, she pressed it against his throat, threatening him. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now!" she yelled at him. He answered her, defiantly leaning forward into her blade, "Because if you do, you will never see your precious Jack Darby alive." Arcee bared her dentals, enraged; and in her fury, she slit his throat.

Everyone was so stunned at what just occurred it took them a moment to process it all. Faster than a jackrabbit, June raced to the Stranger, his limp body splayed across the floor. Arcee was in shock, staring at the crimson-red blood on her blade. 'Oh Primus, what have I done?' she thought.

As June was checking the body, Ratchet started to yell at Arcee, "are you insane?! Do you know that he could have had-" he was interrupted by June's scream, one that made Fowler draw his gun. What everyone saw was extraordinary.

The Stranger was standing, throat still bleeding, with a determined expression on his face. As he was about to speak, Fowler shot two rounds at him. Almost as fast as lightning, he dodged them, to the surprise of everyone.

"As I was saying, Special Agent Jack Darby is not dead, instead, he's been taken prisoner," he stated. "WHERE DID YOU TAKE HIM?!" June screeched, "where did you take my son?!" "What makes you think that we took him?" he flatly shot back. "We did not want to get you involved," he said, "but then Jack Darby was kidnapped." After a small pause, Raf asked, "involved in what?"

The Stranger turned and answered," A Great War." At that statement, worry and confusion flashed upon their faces. He continued," a war that has taken over three hundred years, and nearly innumerable lives. A war in which insanity is commonplace, and 'heroes', in the true sense of the name, go unnoticed and unapplauded,"he proclaimed.

"Jack's in all that?" Asked Fowler. "No, at least not by our calculations," he answered, "we believe he is inside the very heart of our Enemy."

Through all this commotion, Miko had stayed silent. Now she decided to speak. 'Wait a minute, who are you again?" she said, asking the obvious question. "I am Lieutenant General Jarod Flux, Skyjumper Regent Commander," he said, answering the obvious question. "My mission," he continued," is to not only tell you who kidnapped Jack Darby, but also to ask for volunteers for our rescue mission."

"However," he warned, "I won't guarantee your safety. If you join, you may loose more than just a limb." Arcee was the first to speak, "I don't care about your war, I just want Jack back safely." Jarod answered her, his voice low enough for only Arcee to hear, "I would expect slightly less from his guardian." She didn't catch his hint.

After a brief moment, Miko spoke up, "dude, you're not telling us where we're going, or who you are fighting." Jarod answered her, voice laced with contempt, "our enemy is an insectoid race from the now nonexistent planet Cyrostia." He paused, calming his anger. "And if our calculations are correct, Jack Darby is on the largest ship they have: the Hiveship. It carries over three thousand soldiers in a skeleton crew," he finished, making everyone worry.

"There will be twenty Skyjumper Regent's; 'Special Forces' I believe you would call them, most pack more than weapons and armor, they also carry a cunning intuition," Jarod said. "However, I don't have much time; the Hiveship is getting farther away as we speak," he said starting to get impatient.

"Dude," Miko said, "Count me in; if what you say is true, then I want a piece of the action!" Jarod had a thought,'{hmm, is that the only reason she's joining, or is there different reason as well?}'

"Anyone else want to join?" he asked, "no? Then you two follow me."

"Wait a minute, "June demanded, "what is your problem?!" "My problem?" Jarod replied, clearly irritated. "The fact that our enemy landed a strike team on Terran is my problem," he said, turning around. "You may not realize it, but we have gone great lengths to keep them off of Terran, and to keep you out of our conflict," Jarod stated.

June started to get angry. Ignoring the fact that Jarod survived Arcee's deathblow, she angrily spat, "what are you talking about?! We don't even know who you are!" Miko interrupted, "who cares? I'm not going to miss my chance to see some action." Jarod answered June's question. "We are," he said, pausing for dramatic effect, "the Human Imperial Military; and we originate from our Homeworld: Humas." He finished, saying, "now if you don't mind, we are going to try to save your son." And turning to Arcee and Miko, he said, "our ship is outside, waiting for us." And he turned and exited the hanger.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"Wake up," a sharp feminine voice lashed out.

Jack's eyes fluttered open, and he stared directly into the "eyes" of the Queen. Startled, he jumped back in his restraints, uttering, "ah scrap!" He then cried out in pain; she had stabbed him with one of her stingers, releasing a hyper-charging neurostimulant. "Now now, we don't need such language," she said, voice echoing off the walls. Jack grimaced as she took out her stinger.

Suddenly, he felt excruciating pain across his body. It felt, as he later described, like his whole body was crushed and set on fire. He barely thought, 'I may have several broken bones and a few cracked ribs.'

He was half right. Most of the pain, however, was caused by the neurotoxin injected by the Queen. He did have massive internal bleeding, forty-two broken bones, and a few cracked ribs.

The Queen moved gracefully, attracting Jack's attention. Through the pain, he asked, "who are you?" She gazed at him, curiosity in her expression. "Oh! Of course," she exclaimed, "you can call me Quaren." "Alright Quaren," he said, "what do you want?" "I already have what I want," she answered. A puzzled look on his face made her continue, "I want... you," she said. "Why?" Jack asked, trying to control his voice. "Because of your involvement with the Autobots," she said, stepping closer to him. "And... your very..." she said, getting very close to Jack."...Attractive," she whispered.

At this, Jack started to violently struggle against his restraints, making the Queen back away. He continued at this pointless effort, then, exhausted, Jack slumped in his unbroken shackles.

He immediately became aware of Quaren's giggling. "I love it when you struggle," she said, obviously pleased. He looked up, his face inches from hers. What she did next would scar his memory. She inched closer to him, and licked the side of his face. Jack shuddered, and thought, 'save me from this nightmare Arcee! Please, save me!'

* * *

"What do you mean, 'the ship is waiting outside'?" Arcee asked Jarod as they were heading out. "Well," he replied, turning his head. "I could tell you, or I could just show you," he stated, motioning to a seemingly empty tarmac. Arcee and Miko glanced at each other, confusion on their faces. When they returned their gaze to the tarmac, they expected it to be vacant. What they saw was the shimmering image of a huge craft, almost as big as the hanger behind them, disengaging it's cloaking device. They were both lost in astonishment.

The sound of Jarod speaking brought them back to reality. "This is merely a transport vessel, the bigger ship is in orbit," he said. As if on cue, the craft's large doors opened, revealing a huge cargo bay.

Jarod entered, gesturing them inside. They followed hesitantly, unsure of his statement. However, before they boarded, they heard June running toward them, carrying Jarod's helmet with her.

"You forgot your gear," she said, trying to catch her breath. As she handed the helmet to Jarod, he asked, "that isn't the only reason you came out, is it?" "No," she admitted, "I want to make sure my son is safe." Jarod nodded and said, "That's reasonable; however, because you're not military personnel, you will have to stay on the ship." Then, turning to all of them, he addressed, "now, if you don't mind, I will go get my gear."

Soon after he left, both June and Arcee entered the ship; then, after a short moment, they gazed at each other, sharing their uncertainty of trusting Jarod: the Mysterious Stranger; even though he gave a possibility of Jack being alive, it was uncanny that he spoke fluent English. Miko stayed outside and waited For Jarod's return. Even though he seemed a bit crazed, she inexplicably found herself attracted to him.

As soon as he returned, and they were all inside, the craft took off with incredible timing. A moment later, the doors closed. Looking out of one of the large viewports, Miko watched as it accelerated to an almost unbelievable speed. A short moment later, Arcee and June joined her. Shortly, they were in the Ionosphere. Then they witnessed a marvelous phenomenon: the largest starship they ever saw, almost four times larger than the _Nemesis._ It reminded June and Miko of a ship from _Star Wars._

It was a bullet-shaped ship with several subspace engines, and a few slipspace drives. It had thousands of gun emplacements, and millions of what looked like white lights.

Jarod broke the silence, "six kilometers long, a diameter of 1.5 kilometers, and occupancy of fifteen million personnel.

"It's firepower includes one hundred thirty-Tesla plasma cannons, five hundred fifteen-Tesla plasma guns, one thousand five-Tesla repeating plasma guns, ten thousand anti-starfighter turrets, forty kiloton-torpedo bays, and approximately two thousand nine hundred and forty fast-attack fighters; enough to pummel a small moon… or a large space fleet. This is the Imperial Human Navy's Juggernaut-class ship, the _Lost Light_."

He finished with this comment, "It was designed with Cybertronian-accessible points, such as the Bridge, medical bay, flight deck, Engineering, and specially-designed quarters; however, we converted a few of those quarters into storage bays to hold some special materiel." Arcee looked down at him and questioned, "What do you mean 'special materiel'?" "That's" He replied, "need-to-know; I don't need to know, I don't get to know."

After the vessel landed, Jarod directed June to the Medical bay. "Don't worry," He said, "our chief medical officer speaks English… sort of." As June warily weaved between the crowds of soldiers, Jarod led Miko and Arcee down an elevator into the Armory. "If you are going to fight with us," Jarod explained to Miko, "than you will need armor and weapons." At this, Miko's face lit up. Almost as soon as the elevator stopped, Miko took off faster than a greyhound, racing into the maze of weapons galore. Both Arcee and Jarod were surprised at her speed, as they too entered the Armory. "You do realize," Arcee uttered to Jarod, "that we might be here a while." He responded, "Possibly, however I doubt that it will take too long."

Miko stepped out from among the rows of weapons, carrying a large machine-gun like weapon, with a huge grin on her face. "so," Jarod asked, "an EBF-25?" she nodded, saying, "Heck yeah! this thing is AWESOME!" and that left an impression on Jarod's metaphorical heart. After tailoring a suit of EVA armor for her, the three of them trekked back to the Flight Deck. As they arrived, Jarod ushered them back into the transport; however, it now contained about twenty or so soldiers, ones that had similar armor to Jarod's, a few of them were female.

As the trio approached, they heard the soldiers animatedly talking in a queer, alien language. Then, to the partial surprise of Arcee and Miko, Jarod spoke in this exotic language, "{these are the two volunteers, friends of the Target.}" one of the Vanguard spoke up, "{we made a wager on how close a friend they were. I got thirty-five kred's on the robot.}" After a slight pause, she continued, "{who do you think is closest?}" Jarod ignored her question, turning to the volunteers saying in English, "don't worry, we'll get Jack Darby back, or die trying." That statement worried Miko; he didn't say that they'd get him back _safely_ … or even _alive._

Looking around in her seat, Miko saw that every vanguard had various weaponry; some were like Jarod's, others looked similar to a shotgun. She then realized something that had evaded her, 'if this is an advanced other-worldly civilization, than why do their weapons look all-too similar to ours?' she thought. Her gaze fell upon Jarod, and her thoughts turned to how rugged his features are, and other similar trains of thought. He looked up and met her gaze, and she quickly looked away, already starting to blush.

Arcee had sat across from them, watching this whole ordeal. She thought, 'interesting, could Miko be developing an attraction for Jarod?' She pondered this for a moment, then she was jerked back into reality by the craft taking off.

* * *

The trip would take about two hours, in that time, Jarod explained the mission to Arcee and Miko. As they neared the drop point, all the Skyjumpers donned their helmets, snapping them into place. Miko watched, as Jarod put on her helmet on for her; before donning his own. When it was on, his visor started to glow a light greenish-blue; except for the spot where the torch mark slashed through, that was more of a stark-cerulean tint. By the time the ship stopped, the hatch was halfway open. Then all the Skyjumpers charged out the opening, and into the null-gravity void on the other side. Miko and Arcee followed.

When you are in zero-gravity, your normal orientation gets a dramatic reset, as Miko discovered when she exited the shuttle. Although Arcee had a fair experience in EVA, she was a little surprised at how well the Humans were maneuvering. They moved as if they were primarily trained in zero gravity; this wasn't a half-wrong presumption.

As Miko tried to recover from her sudden disorientation, half of the Skyjumpers already landed on the _Hiveship._ The thing was massive, possibly larger than the _Lost Light_ itself. The thing that stood out the most was the two huge rings around the ship, each connected to the ship by three long pylons. It was about six kilometers long, with a beak-like curve at one end.

As soon as they landed, Jarod started barking orders in Humanese. Arcee interrupted him, "so… how long will it be before they know we're here?" Jarod replied, " _make no mistake_ : they will know soon enough." After checking his team's ready status, he said, "get ready to storm the opening." They looked around in confusion, and Miko said, "where? I don't see—" then an explosion, one that was seen behind Jarod and felt through the hull, interrupted her, and stunned her into silence. After that, all of them rushed into the crevasse, and into the hive.

They expected it to be the chaos of intense battle as soon as they entered; it actually took several minutes before it began. When they entered, they saw the charred remains of undistinguishable creatures. Suddenly, a door opened, and before the duo could get a glimpse of what was behind it, the Skyjumpers spun around and opened fire. Before the dead bulk could hit the floor, the Skyjumpers had already charged passed it, "raising hell" as they went.

The two followed, Arcee crouching to fit in the passageway. After it had been cleared, the Skyjumpers regrouped, Jarod ordering three to stay at the Breach. Ten others left to cause a distraction, or rather, a few distractions, by plunging into the heart of the swarm. That left Jarod, four other Skyjumpers, Arcee, and Miko. As they moved along, Arcee noticed that the corridor ahead was large enough for her to stand up straight. As they entered that passageway, a rumble shook the vessel, then two more in sequence. Then an explosion erupted in front of them, and out of the smoke came hundreds of plasma bolts. They returned fire, one of the Skyjumpers throwing a grenade while doing so. After an intense moment, the fighting ceased, and they ran down the passageway.

They stopped to fight a horde of large insectoid aliens guarding a fairly large, vault-like doorway. Thankfully, they didn't get close enough to fight hand-to-hand. After they laid the bugs to waste, Arcee tried to open the door, only to find it locked. This did not stop the Skyjumpers, to the surprise of the duo. Instead of trying to tear the door down, they ignored it completely, setting explosive charges a few meters down the hall. Confused, Miko asked, "dude, why don't you just bring down the door?" Jarod, being the only Skyjumper around who spoke fluent English, cryptically responded, "if you can't go through a door, go around it." This didn't make sense to her, so to clarify things, he explained, "the door is a good two meters thick, and has reinforced locks; the bulkhead is only a half-meter thick, and is barely reinforced at all." He turned to the other Skyjumpers and ordered three of them to stay outside. He then turned back to Miko and said; "as soon as we enter, you are to stay near the breach, is that clear?" she hesitantly nodded, anxiously awaiting the blast. Jarod turned to Arcee. "Commander, you follow me," he ordered, his voice full of command. She hesitantly complied, bracing herself for any impact. As soon as she did, the explosives detonated, rupturing a huge gap in the wall

* * *

Jack awoke suddenly, for no apparent reason.

As he became aware of his surroundings, he noticed something peculiar: the Queen wasn't there. "Thank God," he whispered. Looking down, he thought, 'now if only _someone_ would come and rescue me, free me from this hell.' As if in response, the wall to his right exploded. Jack looked away, trying to duck in his restraints. When looked at the fissure left behind he saw three unrecognizable figures rush through. Then one more figure stepped through the gap, one he had thought he'd never see again.

"Arcee!" he weakly called out. Hearing his unsteady voice, Arcee cried, "JACK!" And, rushing to him, tried to free him from his restraints, saying, "let's get you home, Partner!" One of the strangers barked in a strange, alien language; and another tossed the prior a type of mask. He then spoke to Arcee in fluent English, "get this on him, quickly," and tossed her the mask. "Jack," she softly said, or rather, ordered, "you need to put this on, for your own good." When it was in place, she reached up, and with a delicate precision that could rival a surgeon, used her arm blade to free Jack from his bonds.

All this while, an explosion had ripped through the hall outside; and with it some plasma fire. When Miko turned around, a very grisly scene awaited her: a Skyjumper was kneeling, firing his weapon into an unseen horde. Suddenly, he was shot in the head; it didn't even faze him, however, only making part of his helmet glow a dull orange. Seemingly yelling his version of "is that all you got?" he resumed firing. Then an even larger plasma bolt caught the side of his helmet, knocking him back. When his head tilted to the side, Miko saw the most jarring sight of her life: nearly all of the right side of his head was burned away, helmet and all. She stared at the smoldering flesh that used to be the man's head. It almost seemed that he was looking at her with a dead, pleading eye behind what was left of his visor. She quickly turned away, trying to remove her helmet as quickly as she could.

She was too late. She puked right into her helmet.

As she was hunched over, the English speaking stranger ran up to the fissure and threw a type of grenade off to the side, into the horde. The resulting sound reminded Jack of a bunch of fireworks going off at once. Then "English" charged out of the crevasse, blasting full-auto into the horde of creatures, or what was left of them.

After finishing them off, "English" yelled, "get him out, now!" Arcee picked Jack up and cradled him in her arms as she ran out of the crevasse. The other three followed. What happened next was a blur to Jack, he was so tired, his vision kept fading in and out, and next thing he knew, they were heading for another breach; only this time, it led into a seemingly empty void. By this time, Jack couldn't take it, and he passed out from exhaustion

* * *

As soon as he did, they leaped into the void, and straight onto the cloaked dropship. After climbing back into the bay, the ship engaged it's slipspace drive, and they left post-haste. As Miko recovered, she noticed that there were only six other Skyjumpers, including Jarod. Noticing her questioning gaze, Jarod spoke. "They're dead, we're all that's left," he stated grimly. "that was only a taste of what the Cyrostians are capable of," he finished.

At that statement, fear and dread crept into Arcee's spark. Her partner, lying in her arms, looked like one of Bulkhead's wrecking balls hit him full-bore. She could tell he had several broken bones, and possibly internal bleeding. 'He looks so peaceful,' she thought, 'who knows what agony he endured in that Chamber.'


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

In almost no time at all, they arrived back at the lost light. As she got out, Arcee placed Jack on a type of gurney, and ran with the medics to the medical bay. When they entered, the medical officers started to examine Jack. Jarod Ushered Arcee Back, saying, "Give them space, let the medics do their work. He's in good hands." Arcee gave him a look that was a mix of surprise and worry. She hesitantly stepped back, and watched the medics work on her partner. Their work was fast, and, thankfully, Jack did not require surgery.

Her optic's followed them as they gathered two transparent vials: one had a clear, greenish liquid, and the other had a clouded- black, self-swirling fluid. "What is that?" she whispered. The CMO answered. "The first one is a vial of Antitoxin," he said in a heavy Russian accent. "The other one," he continued, "is a solution of medical nanogenes in a type of… oh, what is that word?—plasma! Yes, plasma." He injected Jack with the antitoxin first, then, after a minute, he injected the solution.

Arcee had been too concerned with Jack to notice the vast size of the infirmary; even though they were in one of the many Cybertronian-accessible sections, the whole facility was about the size of a small Terran hospital. It could care for about one thousand patients at once. (The minor cases were simply sent to the clinic if not in battle.) Another thing she didn't notice was June standing next to her, watching the marvelous work in what could be considered the Trauma Center.

As soon as they were done, they moved Jack into one of the special rooms where Arcee could stay with him, and keep an optic or two on him. As he lay on the medical bunk, she stared at him, watching every twitch and micro-spasm on his face. For the first few hours, her faceplate wore an expression of intense worry; but then, after a while, it slowly changed into fascination.

'It's been so long since I actually have seen him this close before, I never realized how appealing his features are,' she thought. Suddenly Jack stirred, starting to wake up. "Jack?" she asked. He grumbled something unintelligible, then slowly opened his eyes, and gazed into the warm, caring optics of the femme above him. "Hey Arcee," he said groggily. "Hey partner, good to see you awake," she replied. Jack chuckled and said, "You know, I had a dream about you."

However, before Arcee could respond, June walked in. "Hi honey, how are you feeling?" she asked, using her nurse's professional cheer. "Fine," he answered, looking on as Arcee was leaving.

She wandered along the halls of the _lost Light_ , lost in a dreamy sort of mind, not caring where she went. She suddenly found herself in front of a row of doors. Curiosity got the better of her, and she opened one of them. What she saw was almost unbelievable: a huge stockpile unprocessed Energon crystals.

* * *

Miko Found Jarod deep within the armory, taking personal inventory. After Jack's procedure, Jarod vanished, and Miko had wandered around the ship searching for him.

"So…" she said as he turned around, "is this where you go to be alone? It's real… private." "No," he answered, attaching a device to the inside of his helmet. "This is where I go to get new weapons and armor," he finished, turning back around. After a moment of silence, she spoke, "hey, you okay?" Jarod did not reply directly, instead he asked, "have you actually given any thought to why we're here?" he paused before continuing, "we're here as a last resort: the human race is facing extermination." "We're here on our last limb," he continued, "and it's here we make our last stand to protect our Blank-state colony."

"Over the past ten years," he continued further, "the Cyrostians have destroyed all of our other colonies, defeated time and again our military, and have increased their numbers tenfold. Your planet is their last stop to ours. We tried to keep it hidden from them, but now they will come and destroy it!" Miko was too stunned to speak. After a short moment, he sighed, and said, "I did come up with a plan to end it completely, but there are too many unknown variables at play, and it'll be too risky to work; I cannot go through with it." He was lying, he had full intentions on doing his plan, variables and risks be damned.

* * *

Arcee stumbled back to Jack's room in a near-daze. When she arrived outside his door, however, she took a moment to calm herself. As soon as she entered, she turned around and locked the door. She turned her gaze to Jack, expecting him to be asleep. To her surprise, he was wide awake, a look of worry on his face. For a brief moment, a moment that seemed to last an eternity, their eyes and optics locked; only to be broken when she averted his gave, almost as if in embarrassment.

"Jack, you're up," she said. He ignored her half-cherry tone and asked, with worry and caution in his voice, "Arcee, are you okay?" She took a moment to answer. "I'm fine… Partner," she said with a hint of a smile; however her thoughts portrayed a different answer. 'Well,' she thought, 'other than the fact that I nearly lost you, and the other fact that I seem to be constantly infatuated with you, I'm fine.'

He didn't buy her answer; and he could tell she was hiding something. But, instead of pushing the subject further, he decided to change it for the time being. "Do you still want to hear about my dream?" he asked. "Only if we don't get interrupted this time," she said with a smirk, making him chuckle. After a short pause to gather his thoughts and memories, he recalled his dream to her.

 _I wake up in my room at the old house, and I hear someone down the hall. I go past the open door of the garage and I notice that you aren't there. So I say out loud, "did someone take Arcee?" only to receive a familiar sounding giggle from the kitchen. I turn around and enter the kitchen to find you there; only you are about my size, and wearing a hot-pink cooking apron that says "best cook ever!" And somehow, instead of being shocked, I walk over to you and hold you in my arms. You're a bit smaller than I am, and I find out you're not wearing much underneath the apron. I lean down, and we kiss for what seems like an eternity. Then I wake up._

Jack looked at Arcee, only to find a mixed expression of shock, astonishment, and horror. Then he said something that she was not expecting to hear; something that, somehow, invigorated her spark: "Arcee, I know this sounds crazy, but I _love_ you." "Jack," she said, her voice starting to crack, "I can't…  we can't love each other. We're not even the same species!" "Don't give me that, Arcee!" Jack exclaimed, "I know you well enough to know that this is only your 'defense mechanism'." "Jack! We're not compatible!" she insisted. "I don't care Arcee; I've made up my mind: even if we can't have kids, I will still love you. And I know you love me too," he stated. "Jack, that's only an assumption," Arcee asserted. "No Arcee, I can see it in your optics; you're trying to fight your feelings for me," he said.

She looked away, trying and failing to hide the fact that Jack had struck a chord. He walked over to her, and placed a reassuring hand on her leg. "Cee," he began. She interrupted him. "Jack," she said, voice shaking, "I've been thinking about this too, and it scares me." Jack replied, "Arcee, if you have feelings for me, you don't have to be afraid, _I'll always be here for you._ "

Then she knelt down, almost to Jacks eye level, and asked, "Jack, do you _really_ mean that?" he reached up with his hand, and caressed her faceplate. "Yes Arcee," he said, "I do." Then he leaned forward and kissed her. It was the most passionate kiss she ever had, not to mention her first.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter six

Jack and Arcee strolled through the ship, Jack sitting on her shoulders. Eventually, they arrived at the hangar bay. Jack was amazed at how many types of machines were there. Most of what he saw at first was landing craft, and then he saw machines that looked like very large tanks. He even saw what appeared to be mech suits, similar to the ones he saw in _Matrix: Revelations._

They approached an armor-clad man, one who spoke fluent English. Jack, with the help of Arcee, got down and walked up to the stranger. As he approached, he noticed that something wasn't right with the stranger's eye: it was glowing.

Jarod saw them approach as he was conversing with Miko, "I still don't see why you compare me with 'Iron Man'." "But Jarod," she replied, "you both have a reactor in your chest, and you both wear armor." Jarod, being somewhat tired of the conversation, counter-replied, "Personally, I share a greater resemblance to 'Frankenstein's Monster' than 'Iron Man'." Miko thought about this for a moment, then agreed with him.

As Jarod turned to Jack, Jack spoke up, "so, are you the one who rescued me out of that hell-hole?" Jarod deadpanned, saying, "No, if you are looking for the person who saved you, _she_ 's right behind you." Jack turned around, only to find Arcee standing there. At that comment, Arcee spoke out, "What are you talking about? Without you, we wouldn't have found Jack, let alone rescue him. We would've believed he was dead if not for you!" Jarod answered her intriguingly. "I was told to open the Door," he stated metaphorically, a slight scowl on his face, " _You're_ the one who walked through." Both Arcee and Miko were astonished at his apparent humility.

Jack wasn't. For some reason, he couldn't shake away the fact that this guy spoke English fluently; even when his other shipmates didn't. "Alright, how did you learn to speak English so well?" Jack said. Jarod visibly flinched, Jack's demand striking a deep chord. His only answer was, "an old, late friend." Jarod looked at them, a hollow look in his eyes. They could tell that this brought up very bad memories for him, and he wouldn't give any further answer.

His old friend, Alain, was essentially his best friend. He and Jarod had been friends since they were kids. They fought together, ate together, and survived bloody onslaughts together. Alain had a strange fascination with Terran, and not only had taught Jarod English, but also an appreciation for their music (Jarod had come to enjoy the music genre, Dubstep; whereas Alain preferred Metal).

However, this had all come to an end a few years ago… and Jarod was hit hard below the belt with Alain's passing.

* * *

An hour later, after Jarod had received his newest orders, he told them that they could go back to Terran. "I'm going as well," he continued, "I've been ordered to help supervise the installment of an armory, if your government agrees, inside Section E headquarters." This both surprised and somewhat worried the others; Jack, however, became even more suspicious of this as he thought about it. Doubts voiced themselves into questions in his mind; ones like, 'why is he being assigned for this?' and, 'why would they want a barracks on our planet?'

A while after departing, Jarod started to stray in thought, '{It is apparent that Miko has developed an attraction for me, and I have to admit, she is very attractive herself, maybe more than she knows.}' He kept these feelings to himself. He knew full well what the consequences of his plan were, and if he got emotionally involved he might reconsider executing his plan; he had made a promise to Alain that he would end the War, or die trying… and he meant to keep that promise.

When they landed at Hangar E, Agent Fowler was the first to greet them. After hugging the daylights out of him, Fowler gave a salute to Jack; then he warmly kissed June. However, when he noticed Jarod, he demanded, "What in the Sam Hill are you doing back here?!" "Agent Fowler," Jarod replied, "I've been ordered to come here to oversee the installation of a military grade armory." Fowler objected, "Who gave you the Right to—" He was interrupted by his cellphone ringing. He stood up straight when he answered it. "General," he started, listening to what the general had to say.

Fowler looked at Jarod with bewilderment in his eyes, as he turned and walked on. Jack walked up to Jarod and asked, "Why are _you_ here, Why not someone else?" Jarod sighed, and turned to him. "I honestly don't know," he said, "It could be that I'm the one that had the most contact with you."

"Or," he continued, his face darkening, "They just want to get me used to this planet, so They can maroon me here." And with that, Jarod walked away; leaving Jack in puzzlement and Miko (who had been eavesdropping) in worry.

As he walked off, She started after him; hoping to understand what he meant, and to just be with him. Then she began to notice something, and it grew as they went on with his work.

Jarod had not stopped since before they rescued Jack.

Jarod went around the complex, studying its layout and figuring out where to put an effective armory. She helped him out by giving her own recommendations. Eventually Jarod settled on an unused storage bay, and he had to go and order the materiel needed to integrate the armory. But, for some reason, He had to return to the _Lost Light._

After a while, Arcee, Jack, June, and Miko met and started a conversation. Miko spoke up first, "Whoa, Jarod just doesn't stop. I was with him practically since we returned from your rescue," she looked at Jack, and then continued, "He hasn't taken a nap or anything!" Arcee proposed, "Maybe he doesn't need as much sleep as you do." This really started to confuse Jack. "Why are you talking like Jarod isn't Human!?" he said.

They all exchanged glances, then June told him, "because of this," and handed Jack a tablet with Jarod's Bioscan on it.

It took Jack a while before he found his voice. "I thought he was only missing an eye," he said, "this is… extreme." Arcee chimed in, "according to Ratchet, he acquired them over time." This completely astonished Jack, "Holy scrap! I never would have guessed that he was without arms and legs! It's a miracle he's still alive!"

After a short moment of silent agreement, Miko asked, "when you thanked Jarod for saving you, did it seem weird that he denied it?" Arcee replied, "his whole behavior has been erratic, one minute he's commanding a raid, the next he's diverting the honor of rescuing Jack to me." June agreed, saying, "He's very… strange."

* * *

Over a great vastness of Space, the Cyrostian Queen was seething in fury and hatred. She barked out orders to the crew, and they responded faster than instantly. The great Cyrostian Fleet turned around and started toward the planet known as Earth. The Queen was beyond furious. What she wanted was revenge on that Autobot; pure… cold…vengeance.

"She will pay for stealing my mate," she mumbled to herself, "Jack is _mine_ , not hers; I chose him, He will be mine… and she will pay for her interloping with her life."

* * *

The desert canyon was quite peaceful, being calm and serene. It's only disturbance was the arrival of a blue motorcycle and her rider. Arcee stopped at the exact spot she first encountered Jarod. After letting Jack get off, she transformed, walking to a large boulder off to the side. He followed, wondering why she brought him here. After sitting behind the boulder, the very one she hid behind, Arcee explained what this place was, before asking a very precarious question.

"Jack," she said, "How much do you trust Jarod?" he sighed, and said, "I think he'd help us if he had to, but I'd rather keep an eye on him." Arcee looked at him as he continued, "Although he's a good fighter, at least from what I've heard, it seems like he doesn't care about himself. He also seems very unstable, probably even shell-shocked." Jack paused, staring deep into Arcee's optics, then said, "However, there seems to be something very familiar with him."

After thinking of what she meant, he spoke, "Arcee, do you trust him?" "Jack," she replied, "he saved your life, even though he denies it. From what I've seen, he'd help us if we asked. After all, I had trusted him with your life before, and I got you back." She paused, then added, "Yes, I do trust him." She was afraid that this would strain their relationship. To her surprise, Jack accepted her statement, saying, "Well If you trust him, then I'll trust him too." Her expression softened at his statement. "Jack?" she asked, "why would you do that?" "Because that's what lovers should do." "Jack, you didn't have to do that." "Yes I did. I did it because I love you, and I trust your judgement" he approached her, and they kissed.

"Jack," she started after a short moment. "Jack, what about us?" she asked. "Arcee, I've already told you: I'll stay with you for as long as I can." An expression of agony flashed across her faceplate. "Great, that only gives me eighty more years, if I'm lucky!" she exclaimed. "Arcee—" Jack said before getting interrupted. "I can't stand the thought of losing you for good!" she cried, already starting to sob. "Then we'll make it the best years of our lives," he stated, trying to comfort her.

"What about the fact that we can't have kids?! We're two alien species Jack, two _different_ alien species! We don't have the same chemical structure! It would be impossible!" she ranted, gesturing wildly. "Arcee, we could always adopt a child, he returned. "But," Arcee returned, after thinking about it, "I feel like they wouldn't be 'ours', it wouldn't be the same."

Jack sighed in defeat, saying, "then I guess there's only one option: to not have any kids." He paused, contemplating what to say next. "Or," he finally said, "We can at least try." "After this whole ordeal is settled, and things calm down," she responded, agreeing to what he said. Jack sighed, and thought, '…and after we get married; Mom would go berserk if we had a child and didn't get married.' Arcee had a similar thought, 'He'd have to be my sparkmate in order for us to have children, even if it was possible.'

* * *

Jack and Arcee returned to base.

To their surprise- and almost everyone else there- there were several strange crates of equipment, and several Imperial Engineers working on upgrading their computer systems, under ratchet's watchful gaze. When they were done, they left behind several unopened, hard-core, heavy-duty metal crates. Jarod had arrived just before Jack and Arcee did, and had been teaching some soldiers how to operate an "A.P.U." as Jack called it. Now he was talking to General Bryce, telling him to warn his superiors what was coming.

After they had finished, Jarod entered the newly completed armory, where he met Jack and Arcee. "I don't suppose you could train me to use one of those?" Jack asked, motioning to a plasma sniper rifle. "No," Jarod replied, "You're already sniper-trained, aren't you?" Jack nodded, and continued, "So, I can have one of these, right?" Jarod deadpanned, "I don't care." Jack moved and picked out the most-familiar looking rifle of the selection: a CS-6 "Longshot".

"I came down here to tell you:" Jarod said, "They are coming." Arcee looked down at him and asked, "Who is?" although she already knew the answer. "Who do you think? The Cyrostians!" he exclaimed without missing a beat, "They'll be here in less than a week, in full frontal force this time."

"Thankfully," he continued, "our main battle fleet and two others will start to arrive tomorrow to blockade Terran." At this, Jack became pensive, and Arcee could tell. After a pause, Jarod voiced his thoughts, "Personally, I doubt that will be enough. I doubt there are many conceivable plans that would be." He paused again, thinking about what he wanted to say. "There is a fairly simple plan that would, at least, make the Cyrostians stunned long enough to push them back," he finally said, "cut off their head, kill the Queen."

Jack looked at him, than sighed, shaking his head, saying, "how about telling us a more realistic plan, and not one made of pure fantasy." Jarod stoically replied, "I just did." He turned and started to walk around the room, as Jack and Arcee looked on, before saying, "And it's my full intention to carry out that plan." Arcee and Jack glanced at each other, before she spoke, "Like you, of all people, are able to go against all of her legions and be able to find her." Jarod replied, "I am." The duo looked at him in disbelief, saying in unison, "but you'll die."

"Then I'll finally be at peace!" he spat in return, and turned to go; he stopped, however, stated, "I made a promise to my best friend as he died. He told me to end this war as best as I could… or die trying. I cannot break that promise… that _covenant_ … even though I wish I could." He turned to them, regret and determination in his eyes, and continued, " _I will do everything I can to put an end to this war… even if I die in the process._ " And he left. The two were too shocked to speak, Jarod's last sentence ringing in both ears and audio receptors.

As what was left of Team Prime was about to see, here stood before them a machine trained to kill, and fueled by sheer determination. His planned Endgame was to execute the Cyrostian Queen, by his own death if necessary. But they also saw a side of him that rarely showed: compassion, friendship, and honor. One had a crush on him, and his death would shatter her.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter seven

The blockade arrived.

Jarod and Miko boarded a dropship that would take them to the _Lost Light._ On the way up, Miko started a conversation, "Jarod." She paused, unsure if what she was going to say would jeopardize her "relationship" with him. She had a thought, 'I shouldn't tell him about my feelings yet,' then she remembered what happened in that hall aboard the alien ship. She started to turn pale, thinking about that man who lost his life, his gaze seemingly piercing hers as his life left him.

Seeing her turn pale, Jarod asked, "You're thinking of him, aren't you?" She nodded. "We Regents all know the risks, to us death is only one of them," he said. She looked up at him, and demanded, "How are you so used to this?! I couldn't stand a few seconds of it before I retched, but you're barely fazed by it!" "Miko," he said, "it doesn't matter that you retched and I didn't, everybody does when they see that grizzly sight for the first time, even me." She looked on as he continued, "I retched thirty-three times before I stopped, but I never got used to it."

Her eyes widened at his comment, and she asked, "How long have you been fighting?" "Since I was eight," he replied, making her draw a short breath. His face started to be downcast, as he remembered those twelve years of war. She asked him another question, but he didn't respond, his eyes gaining a distant and glazed over look; his prosthetic hands started to tremble involuntarily, and he became more and more unaware of his surroundings.

The craft suddenly thudded, jolting Jarod back into reality. He got up and made for the exit hatch, but not before Miko stopped him mid-stride. "Jarod, are you okay?" she asked him, deep concern plastered on her face. He looked down at her and replied, "Don't worry about me, I'll live." But in his mind he thought, 'you're better off not knowing, Miko, you shouldn't have to bear a Monster's burdens.'

As soon as the hatch opened and the ramp was deployed, the two walked out, Jarod behind Miko. To their surprise, there was an Executive General—in his late forties— waiting on the flight deck for them. As soon as Jarod stepped off, he stood at attention and saluted. "{General!}" He said. The General responded with a salute in return, saying, "{at ease, Jarod.}" Turning to Miko, he spoke in a Scottish-Irish accent, "you're gonna have to keep up with 'im lass, he's very… unpredictable." Before she could reply, the General walked off, leaving a stumped Miko and a confused Jarod standing on the landing deck.

"Wh- what was he talking about?" she asked. "It's going to be our fiercest battle," he reminded her, "it may take our existence as a Race as we know it." Although Jarod sounded cryptic to her, Miko thought he meant the end was coming. What she didn't realize was that it was his end he was planning. In fact, the only people who knew his plan were on Earth… or dead; no one else knew, they didn't need to know.

The next day, Jarod was transferred to the _Mourning Star_ , Miko stayed on board the _Lost Light_ and helped man a plasma autocannon, and Jack and Arcee readied the ground forces for invasion.

Then, a day later, the Cyrostians arrived.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

They arrived in succession, first in tens, then hundreds, escalading to thousands at once. Each arrival was announced by a flash of light.

Jarod observed from the bridge of the _Mourning Star_ , by his own internal AI assisted count, there were over 27,300 ships, far more than their own. Almost simultaneously, all the heavy weapons on the Human warships aimed at the approaching swarm. The _Mourning Star_ led the volley by launching several hyper-torpedoes, each sailing toward the Hiveship. Of the torpedoes launched, only a fraction reached their target, the rest detonated on other ships of the swarm. Several ships went nuclear and vaporized in a flash of light.

By this time, both fleets were exchanging fire, plasma for plasma, turbolaser for torpedo, shields flaring from the explosive plasma bursts. The massive swarm creeping ever closer to Earth seemed unstoppable, even though they were losing more ships than the humans. Now both fleets merged, launching every starfighter available. The only ship to break through the blockade was the Hiveship, crawling towards Earth with ravenous hunger, already starting to launch its landing craft.

Jarod donned his helmet, and headed toward the bridge airlock.

Suddenly, the bridge exploded, sucking everything not bolted down screeching into the void.

...And Jarod felt darkness overtake him.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Jarod found himself suspended in zero-gravity. Looking "up," he saw what was left of the bridge. He activated his maneuvering thrusters and soared in through the gaping hole. He entered right as a plasma charge knifed through the space outside, melting part of the outer bulkhead in its wake.

* * *

Arcee watched as the massive ship approached, launching smaller craft to land troops. The emotions that ran through her systems were that of anticipation… and dread. As the ships got closer, Arcee deployed her Energon blasters. The battle was about to begin.

She looked down at Jack, catching sight of his determined expression, one he forged in their absence to not show fear, and his tensed muscular stance. 'Oh Jack! I pray to Primus that we'll be together for as long as we can; and that you can join me in the Allspark,' she thought. She looked back just as the ships entered the atmosphere.

* * *

Jarod reached the command console, and to his relief, it was still operational. Activating the sensory/targeting system, he mapped out the battle in a three-dimensional overview hologram. Then inputted commands to the navigation and maneuvering systems. Jarod jetted toward the gaping hole, reaching the edge as a turbolaser blast streamed too close for normal comfort. He crawled himself over to the outer airlock door two decks down, practically hugging the exterior. His plan was to use the airlock like a kind of cannon to blast himself toward Terran; thing was, the airlock was fused to the ship, and at the moment _It_ wasn't even rightly oriented perpendicular to the planet. Jarod would have to wait for the maneuvering systems to kick in. He didn't wait long.

As soon as the _Mourning Star_ was oriented right, Jarod opened the airlock doors. All the pressurized air still inside rushed out, propelling Jarod, along with anything not secured inside, faster than his own thrusters could carry him.

* * *

When the Cyrostian ships entered airspace, the Terrans attacked, and almost half fell to a smashing, burning death. The few that landed were soon shot down after discharging their troops. Of the troops they had, the majority were simple grunts, cannon fodder, and those were taken down by bullets like turkeys. The problem was the heavies, the giant, cockroachian monsters that stood a good eight feet tall; and the few xeno-mechs, colossal, mantis-like four-legged titans powerful enough to tear through solid Cybertronian steel. Those were the ones that stormed after Jack and Arcee, slaying any others that got in their way.

Arcee was blasting away at the swarm, along with the military force and volunteer militia. Jack was shooting with his newly acquired plasma rifle as well; but, to Jack and Arcee's horror, the alien horde slaughtered the paramilitary forces nearby, leaving the two alive, captured, but alive. A few moments later, they were forced into bondage.

Arcee fought against it, resulting in her electrocution by a specially designed xeno-mech. crying out in pain, she fell to her servos-and-knees, making Jack wrench free and run to his lover. "Arcee!" he yelled out of worry. The Cyrostians caught and subdued him before he could reach her. "Arcee wake up!" Jack yelled one last time before he was knocked unconscious; however, he thought he heard her moan, "Jack?" before he blacked out.

The insectoid Cyrostians then carried the unconscious body of Jack, and the semi-conscious form of Arcee, to a transport ship, and then off to the Hiveship. The prisoners had a meeting with their Queen.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

When Jack came to, he watched as he and Arcee were led down an all too familiar corridor. Finally, they stopped inside the same chamber Jack was tortured in. He looked around, taking note that the hole in the wall wasn't there anymore. As he looked around he finally saw Arcee, held down by two large xeno-mechs. He was forced across the chamber by two heavies, and was turned to face his extraterrestrial girlfriend.

Then the familiar sadistic voice of the Queen filled the chamber, "ah, the little blue robot and its amusing human pet." As soon as she said "pet" Arcee became enraged, struggling against her restrainers, yelling, he is not a pet!" The Queen stepped out into the light, revealing herself to Arcee for the first time. In her processor, the Queen looked eerily similar to Arachnid. "He will be, "The Queen said, "After I'm through with you!" At that statement, Arcee and Jack locked their gaze, staring at each other.

The Queen glanced between them. "Why," she said, "is it love I see in dear Jackson's eyes?" stepping closer to him, she continued, "Well, well, It seems that it _is_ love I see, a love for…" She turned, following his gaze, and gasped at who she saw. " … A robot, and not just any Robot, but an alien _femme_?!" she turned to him, "poor Jack, your love is only one-sided, I'm afraid." She then looked at Arcee, staring deep into her optics, "After all, _machines don't feel emotions to your kind._ " But that was a lie, the Queen saw what was in Arcee's optics: Intense affection –no, adoration– for Jack, a mere mortal _Human._

After a pause, The Queen suddenly stated, "we'll take this outside.

* * *

Jarod was closing the distance. Right as the Hiveship entered Terran atmosphere, he landed on its drive complex. He maneuvered over a close to the bulkhead passageway –a vein, if you will– and strapped on a breaching device. As it detonated, he simply stood in the blast, letting his armor –a customized suit ironically similar to _Katarn_ armor– take the brunt of it. After the jet of fire dissipated, Jarod entered the breach, CS-18 carbine at the ready. He proceeded to a hatch-way, after encountering only a few dead exoskeletons. The hiveship's self-sealing endoskin –having the consistency of soft rubber– sealed over the rip in the bulkhead; and he waited for the hall to repressurize. As soon as the pressure was equalized, Jarod opened the hatch…

…and almost walked into the arms of a simple grunt. It didn't have a chance of registering Jarod before he shot twenty-four holes in its head. He moved on, systematically moving through the ship. Then he came across something he didn't expect: traces of Energon. He followed it to the torture chamber; but by the time he reached the chamber, he was too late.

They were gone.

* * *

Jack arose to the outside world still restrained. Both he and Arcee had been electrocuted on their way up. Hers was due to an attempted escape, his from the Queens sadism. They were both marched in single file to the surface of the ship.

"Now," the Queen boasted, "observe the might of the Cyrostian Empire as we subjugate your world!" intense worry was splayed across Jacks face when she said that, but before he -or anyone for that matter- could reply, a nearby hatch exploded. And, as the smoke cleared, there stood Jarod like an armored colossus, combat knife in one hand, CS-18 carbine in the other.

* * *

After exiting the chamber, Jarod followed the faint trail down a corridor. Then it stopped, fading out completely. He looked around and found himself at a six-way intersection. He knew where they were headed, and picked a tunnel at random.

He traveled down the passageway until he came to a branching corridor. Looking down that corridor, he saw a sight that unnerved him. He saw a man wearing blue jeans, an olive green tee under an open, grey, long-sleeved shirt, and a red baseball cap. The odd, out-of-place thing about him was not only was he on the Hiveship, but Jarod could only see him with his natural eye; his ocular piece showed an empty hall.

The man in the red hat turned to Jarod, and walked toward him. Jarod raised his CS-18 _Rapidstrike_ at him; but, suddenly, the man simply faded away from this universe –and into a bar or pub in another one– leaving Jarod standing there like a stupefied idiot.

* * *

Miko, aboard the _Lost Light_ , saw the Hiveship enter Earth's atmosphere; and wanted desperately to get back down there and fight. She got up from the turret station, and practically ran through the corridors leading to the flight deck. She was so distracted in reaching the deck that she ran into an officer coming around the corner.

"Oh jeez," Miko said, getting back up, "I'm so sorry mister–" she stopped as she actually saw the officer. "No harm done," _She_ replied in perfect English, "what were you doing, running through here without watching where you're going?" Miko stared at her for a moment –the officer's tight-fitting uniform revealed a fit figure that made Miko jealous, her brown hair, tied in a bun, was slightly disheveled, She was paler than Miko, her skin as smooth as silk, but her weathered face revealed a strong, formidable, commanding character– trying to come up with a believable reply. The officer smoothed out her uniform. "Well?" she asked, "why were you in a hurry?" Miko finally replied, "I want to go back to Earth, I was going to take a shuttle down there and help fight."

"You wouldn't have gone far, even _if_ you managed to start a shuttle, the deck crew would have shut down the stolen craft before you could leave, and you would have been caught and imprisoned in the brig for your crime," the officer said, her azure eyes boring into Miko's, "Why?"

"Huh?" Miko blinked. "Why would you want to fight?" she clarified, "Any specific reason?" Miko just stood there, confused at what the officer was saying. "Hmm," she said, "well, coincidentally, I was going to get you; it seems that Someone-you-know has gone and done a silly thing."

The officer turned on her heel and walked to the flight deck, commanding Miko to follow. She did, nearly having to jog trying to keep pace with her. They entered a special shuttle on the flight deck, the officer taking the controls. Miko looked around, and to her surprise, she found a suit of battle armor in an open compartment, and with it, an EBF-25 _Vulcan_. Trying it on, she found it to be her size exactly, fitting as well as her EVA suit did. She looked up at the officer, seeing the patch on her arm designating the service she was in: it was strange, unlike any others Miko had seen which were based on the Shield-and-lightning-bolt, this one, however, was an obsidian ring, encompassed by an oblong crescent of the same color.

"Um," Miko said, unsteadily, "who, exactly are you? I know you're non-military, so who are you?" the officer turned around, staring at Miko with her sharp blue eyes again, and said, "Imperial Office of Stellar Intelligence, I'm … Juno, call me Juno."

* * *

Jarod made his way to a hatch, weaving through the halls and ducts in the ship. He placed his last breaching device at the foot of it, and set it off. It smokily exploded. While still enshrouded by smoke, Jarod drew his combat knife, and duel-wielded it with his carbine. When the smoke cleared, he noticed that both prisoners and the Queen wore expressions of shock. Although his arrival was a bit too dramatic for his taste, he didn't care.

He didn't waste time with words; instead, he simply paused for a miniscule moment, and then charged at the Queen, firing in sporadic full-auto bursts. As soon as he did, the Queen drew her own plasma handgun, firing back at him as he charged. Her shots bounced off his armor, his made her personal energy shield flare. Almost instantly, Jarod came close to striking distance; however, as soon as he did, she used her wasp-like wings and flew away, landing right behind Jack.

She drew her hand gun on him, saying, "{come any closer, and I'll spray his brain across the deck!}" Jack looked at Arcee, but said nothing.

Jarod paused, contemplating his options, before simply holding out his carbine, dropping it, and then falling to his knees, his hands behind his head. Almost instantly, out of all the nearby hatches swarmed several insectoid troops. Jarod never offered up any resistance when they swarmed him, letting them force him face-down to the deck, still staring at the Queen through his helmets visor.

The Queen fluttered to him, seemingly unaware of his out-of-character behavior. "{Hmm,}" she said in Humanese, "{what did you think you would have accomplished, killing me?}" Jarod remained silent as she sadistically giggled. As she landed, she inspected Jarod, commenting, "You seem like a well-built human, but I wonder what your face looks like?" as if telepathically linked, the drones immediately removed his helmet, revealing his scared-but-handsome face. "My-my, what a rugged face; I may just keep him too!" she cooed. Her statement made Jarod glare at her in a mix of rage, hate, and disgust. Arcee, the only other person to hear, asked threateningly, "what do you mean 'too'?"

The Queen answered her question, "don't you understand? I'm the last Queen, and It's time for me to choose…" she paused, glancing at Jack, "… a mate." Fury broiled through Arcee's frame, her optics locked on the Queen, ready to kill given the chance. "Of course, I'll have to terminate you to acquire young Jackson," she sadistically stated to Arcee, wanting to make both her and Jack squirm. Having the notion that they wouldn't die together, Arcee threatened, "It will take more _Vermin_ to kill me than you have on this ship," placing an extreme emphasis on "vermin". Jack, however, was already too shocked to speak. Jarod, however, barely spoke at all, but chose to sigh as if in resignation. "{So, this is the end,}" he whispered.

What happened next was beyond bizarre. A strange, muted popping sound preceded the screeching of Jarod's restrainers. Jarod -the sight of him extraordinary in and of itself- simply radiated energy. Standing up, streaks of energized plasma flashed between him and the ship. He turned to them, his eyes flashing.

Was it Jack's imagination, or did he see plasma wings sprouting out Jarod's back?

* * *

Miko walked to the cockpit, helmet in one hand, EBF-25 "SAW" in the other. Officer Juno slightly turned to her and said, "We're approaching the target." Miko looked out at the hulking mass of the Hiveship, and at the glowing energy localized on the opposite side. "So," Miko asked, "who exactly is in trouble?" Juno looked at her for a moment, 'is she _really_ that dense, or is she avoiding the answer?' "LT. General Flux, Skyjumper REGENT Commander," she replied matter-of-factly, the faintest hint of a loving smile on her face. Miko looked at her wide-eyed, unsure if she should be surprised or not. They passed around the Hiveship, and saw the source of the blazing energy: an armor-clad man with electric-like flashes surging around him.

Wait, was that…

Jarod?

* * *

Jarod reattached his helmet and marched toward the retreating Queen. "{I will give you a choice,}" Jarod said, "{surrender or die.}" He fully expected her to retaliate. She did. The Queen charged Jarod, using her stingers to try and pierce his armor. She sheared his helmet's faceplate in half, rushing in-and-out like an insect. He was throwing powerful blows as well, at one point nearly smashing her face with his fist. Her proximity to his Uber-energized state made her personal shield "burn" in a prismatic aura. Suddenly, the constant strain on the shield made it, literally, shatter like glass.

The shield no longer protecting her, the photoplasmic energy radiating from Jarod, figuratively, brought her to her knees. Jarod took a chance, and drop-kicked her, and she dropped face-down to the deck. She, trying to regain control, tried to get back up as fast as she could, but Jarod was faster, and he planted his boot in her back -right between her shoulder blades- gripped her wasp-like wings, and tore them out, evoking a retched scream from her throat. The energetic aura suddenly vanished, leaving Jarod very exposed. Seeing her chance, the queen shook him off of her, and lashed out in anger and pain, trying to stab him in the chest. However, he single-handedly grabbed her by the throat in the middle of her lunge. Their eyes met, and she saw, what appeared to be, a look of… tranquility... in his eyes.

It didn't last long, as she tried to stab him while in his grip. However, instead of slashing his heart, she stabbed him in his shoulder. He lessened his vise-like grip, and she broke free, ready to land a finishing blow. She let her arm fly, and the stinger attached to it. It hit her target, and she could feel the arteries popping, the muscle tearing, and the ribs snapping as she slashed through Jarod's chest. He staggered as she leered over him, watching him die with obscene pleasure. But then a grin started to appear on his face, and all he said –in a whisper, _and_ in English- was, "Either way, I win."

Jarod lunged forward. The Queen tried to block his lunge, but he did something that stunned her. Jarod, when he was close enough, reached behind her head, and embraced it with his hand. The Queen tried to fight back, Jarod leaning in closer, but she stopped when his lips met hers. She nearly melted in his embrace, and thought that this was ecstasy. She tried to slip her glossa past his tongue and into his mouth. For her a moment seemed to last for an eternity.

For Jarod, it passed in only a minute and a half.

Suddenly, her eyes shot open, as she felt the huge pain in her gut. Jarod gave his combat knife a twist, and leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "{for my brother…}" and slid his knife out of her. He drew back his arm, and embedded his knife in her neck, right through the spinal column. She collapsed, dead before she hit the deck.

* * *

Miko saw Jarod get slashed, and she acted fast. Before Juno could stop her, she had opened the hatch and jumped out, not even bothering to put on her helmet. She hefted her new _Vulcan_ and blasted apart the Buggers restraining Jack, nearly hitting him in the process. Juno looked on for a moment, before training the ships cannons on Arcee's guards and letting loose. When Miko looked back at Jarod, she saw him thrust his knife into the Queens neck, watching the corpse collapse onto the deck. He turned around, facing Miko, and tried to take a step. Miko stood in amazement at this immense power he possessed. But it didn't last for long.

Jarod fell to his knees, as if mortally wounded. At this, Miko ran to him, yelling his name. She caught him as he was falling backwards. "Jarod!" whimpered, looking into his face. He was taking short, shallow breaths, eyes wide open. "No, no, no, no, no! Don't die Jarod, please, don't die!" she demanded, starting to shed tears as she removed what was left of his helmet. Jarod managed a few words before slipping into the dark, "Miko, I'm sorry… I love you." She didn't quite hear him.

After checking for a pulse –one that wasn't there– Miko started CPR. Unfortunately, Jarod had died, but she didn't give up, only compressing his chest faster and more vigorously. She started to beat his chest, sobbing. Jack walked up and put his hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort his friend.

Miko stopped, bending over and sobbing into Jarod's chest. Then she felt it, the rise and fall of Jarod taking a deep breath. Gasping, she took his pulse, but didn't find one. Jarod was alive, unconscious, but alive. She resumed compressing his chest, but he was drawing breath on his own. Now the tears she shed were not of sorrow or pain, but of joyous relief.

Officer Juno ran up, ignoring both Jack and Arcee, and motioned two medic robots carrying a stretcher over. They put him on the stretcher and carried him to the shuttle, both Miko and Juno following. Jack and Arcee stood there, not knowing what to do as the shuttle lifted off for the semi-crippled _Lost Light_.

Then Arcee made her move. She bent down, and kissed Jack warmly. He kissed her back. They found some comfort in the fact that they both were alive, possibly changed, but alive.

* * *

Juno looked on as the _Lost Light_ 's medics took Jarod to the medical bay, his girlfriend following close behind. '{well, looks like you've grown up,}' she thought, remembering the last time she saw him… many years ago, back when they were kids. She turned back to the cockpit, preparing to leave, as she thought, '{it's nice to see you again… little brother.}'

Then she left.


	12. Epilogue

_Epilogue_

Agent William Fowler stepped into General Witwicky's office. Along with the General, there were two other men whom Fowler didn't recognize. "General," Fowler acknowledged.

"Mr. Fowler, please sit down," He said, and after a pause, stated, "These two Gentlemen have come to me with a… interesting offer." He continued, "They want a member of their military to serve in section E." after a pause, Fowler said, "alright who's the candidate?" one of the two men handed him a hard-light document, formatted in English.

Name: Flux, Jarod K. 99372-0149X

Age: approx. 21 Terran cycles

Previous occupation(s):

Recruit- 2nd Lieutenant: Cavalry, armored personnel unit

Lieutenant-Lt. Commander: advanced armored personnel unit

Recorded death: 9.10.10 T.C Recorded reanimation: 9.15.10 T.C

Commander-colonel: Skyjumper, REGENT

Colonel-Lt. General: REGENT Commander

Relations:

Magnain, Alain H. –Companion (MIA-8.31.10 T.C)

Flux, Juno –Sister (Missing-10.19.01 T.C)

After a moment, Fowler spoke, "Well, technically He'd be a valuable asset to Section E," he paused, "but what I don't understand is, why do you wanna get rid of him?" one of the two, wearing an eyepatch, spoke up, "because we believe that his usefulness is better suited here." It sounded like bull to Fowler.

…

After his emergency surgery, Miko walked into the recovery ward, seeing Jarod laying in the gurney; the first time she saw him without his armor, exposed from the waist up. His muscle-bound chest showed the scars of over a decade of warfare. Sitting at his side, she was tempted to reach out and touch his muscular chest; but instead, held his limp prosthetic hand, and listen to his deep, hypnotic breathing.

For weeks she stayed like this, only leaving to eat or relieve herself, sleeping in the chair next to his unconscious form. She often silently cried next to him, praying -to whatever deity that would listen- that he would wake up. Sometimes she would fantasize about the two of them, being together. But she always held his hand, waiting for a response. Over time, she noticed something strange: Jarod wasn't growing a beard; in fact, he had no facial hair outside of his eyebrows, even though he wasn't shaved for the past week. She pondered this for a while, but couldn't come up with an explanation.

Then, two weeks after the surgery, when Miko started to feel hopeless, she felt a gentle squeeze in her grasp. Gasping, she gazed at Jarod, just in time to see his eyes open. "Jarod?" she asked, not how he would react. He looked at her, confusion on his face. He grunted as he sat up, speaking, "{how long have you been there,} Miko?"

"You're awake?" she responded.

"Last time I checked," he said, switching to English.

As he got off the side opposite Miko, she saw his scarred backside. Bewildered, Miko asked rhetorically, "what tortures have you been through?" Jarod sighed, saying, "Miko, you have to realize that I'll be leaving, but you're not going with me." Downtrodden, she muttered, "Maybe if I told you how I feel about you, you'd change your mind!"

"Miko," he explained, "it's not my choice to make." Walking to the door, he paused and said, "I'm sorry this is like this, but I believe this is the last time we'll see each other." He stopped at the door, and uttered, "Goodbye."

Then he left.

…

On one of Cybertron's moons, something dark and insidious stirred.

 _To be continued... in TFP:Heartless_


End file.
